slightly OT - Whisk(e)y In The Giro

alan_a

Hi, Can I pick your brains please.

On the Thursday of the Belfast Giro start I will be hosting a Giro themed whisk(e)y tasting in a Belfast whiskey bar after the rider presentation.

The plan is to present 6 whiskies which have a Giro link or inspired by an iconic giro moment / rider.

As an easy starter:

Bushmills 21 yr old: Bushmills distillery is on the route. However the 21year old expression is aged in Oloroso Spanish Sherry Casks... who is a famous Andalusian Giro rider?

another possibilty

In honour of Mr Stephen Roache - P&M 7 yo 2005/2012 (42%, OB, France/Corsica)

It's a French whiskey that was matured in Corsican wine barrels. Ok it's a very loose link. But Roache's first big win was against The Badger in the Tour of Corsica.

---

Hopefully you get the idea of what I am trying to do. You come up with the most iconic moments / people and places of the Giro and I will try to link it to an interesting whisky that the punters can get pished with after the Thursday night presentation of the teams.

knedlicky

How's this - a past Giro rider with links both to this year's Giro and to whisky:

In the 1950s there used to be an Italian rider called Guido De Santi. He won one stage of the Giro, finished 2nd or 3rd in another half-a-dozen stages, and wore the pink jersey once for about 3 days. His best overall GC placing in the Giro was 8th.
He came from Trieste, where the Giro will finish this year (there is nowadays a street in Trieste named after him, Belvedere Guido De Santi).
And he had the nickname Whisky! (I've no idea how he came to get that nickname).

And a couple of whisky-related links to the Giro:

There is one distillery in Italy which makes malt whisky, since 2012, although it isn’t yet on the market because of the requirement that malt whisky be minimum 3 years in the barrel before able to be sold. The distillery is called Puni, and it’s located at Glurns, which is west of Merano.
The connection to the Giro - this year the Giro won’t be that far away from the distillery. On stage 16, when it comes down the Stelvio before heading to Val Martello, it’ll pass through Prad which is only about 5 km south of Glurns.

And, like many other towns throughout the world, Milan has an annual whisky fair, and Milan is the traditional finish town for the Giro – although having said that, it wasn’t last year and it won’t be this year either. But traditionally.

Can't imagine how you might choose a particular whisky to link to any of the above, though.

alan_a

I love you Knedlicky - Puni is getting an email in the morning. I'll try to get some spirit off of them.

Love the story of Guido De Santi.

The link between whisky and cyclist can be very implausible, so long as I make it sound plausible ;-)

tailwindhome

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manx_Spirit

alan_a

TailWindHome wrote:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manx_Spirit

:shock:

This stuff sounds like sacrilege.

But I'm intrigued.

Garry H

Include Dublin distillers? Power(s) of the Pink!

Sjaak

Have you heard of these guys:

http://www.last.fm/music/The+Men+They+C ... Giro+(live)

edit:

other attempt: http://www.bbc.co.uk/music/records/nzpqbq

specialgueststar

Pink label?? :oops:

specialgueststar

alan_a

Loving the Pink Edradour.

Macaloon

Bashful Giant-SHIMANO ace, Marcel Kittel, gets his intensity from Suntory - Yamazaki single malt.

alan_a

Knedlicky - I owe you a dram.

Dear Alan,

Thank you for your interest in our distillery and for wanting to include
PUNI in your show for the Giro d'Italia 2014.

Two things I love finally come together, scottish comedy & italian whisky.
(see what I did there?) We will gladly take part in your programm with our
two year old ALBA. I will send you a couple of bottles within this week.
Apart from being the obvious novelty, I do hope you actually enjoy our spirit.

Please send me the address where you wish the bottles to be shipped to.


Best Regards,

Jonas Ebensperger

alan_a

Yum yum... looks like we will be having some of this



and hopefully some of that

knedlicky

Alan A wrote:

Knedlicky - I owe you a dram.

Dear Alan,
... I will send you a couple of bottles within this week.
Best Regards,
Jonas Ebensperger

Forget the dram, just send me the second bottle!

josame

I run a whisky club but can't think of much of a link beyond Puni, these lot are well regarded independent bottlers in
Treviso:
Wilson & Morgan
Viale IV Novembre, 62. Treviso . Southern Italy. Italy. 31100
Tel : +39 422 54 33 77

Treviso is where Pinarello come from and Cavendish won a Giro stage there last year

Have a good one. Slainte!

RideOnTime

SpecialGuestStar wrote:

You've made this up, surely...

MisterMuncher

Yes, but: Which Whiskey Bar? I'm going to see Clutch in The Limelight that night, but I'd be most interested in a few pre/post beverages.

awavey

RideOnTime wrote:

SpecialGuestStar wrote:

You've made this up, surely...

doesnt seem like it, and how cool is it that it comes in a whisky bottle gift box http://www.cyclesurgery.com/pws/UniqueP ... lsrc=aw.ds

alan_a

MisterMuncher wrote:

Yes, but: Which Whiskey Bar? I'm going to see Clutch in The Limelight that night, but I'd be most interested in a few pre/post beverages.

Thursday 8th May after the Giro Presentation. Hudson Bar, 10-12 Gresham St, Belfast.

alan_a

Look what arrived today.



I am getting more and more excited about next week.

tailwindhome

Whiskey only?

http://www.skyy.com/

alan_a

http://whiskycomedian.wordpress.com/2014/05/07/whisky-for-the-giro/



The full list of whiskies to be tasted is:

Aberfeldy 12 yo 40%
Arran Amarone cask 50%
Edradour Barolo cask 11yo 58.3%
Gordon & Macphail Caol Ila Sassicaia cask 18yo 45%
Springbank Gaja Barolo cask 9yo 54.7%
Puni Alba Marsala cask 43%

Plus something unusual from Bushmills.

Hudson Bar, Gresham St. 8pm onwards

frenchfighter

Nice work Alan, hope it is a successful evening for you.

RonB

With you in spirit Alan Buona fortuna.

knedlicky

Alan A wrote:

http://whiskycomedian.wordpress.com/2014/05/07/whisky-for-the-giro/

The full list of whiskies to be tasted is:
Aberfeldy 12 yo 40%
Arran Amarone cask 50%
Edradour Barolo cask 11yo 58.3%
Gordon & Macphail Caol Ila Sassicaia cask 18yo 45%
Springbank Gaja Barolo cask 9yo 54.7%
Puni Alba Marsala cask 43%

There's a lot of straws there! (in the link)

Have you in mind to mention Guido De Santi in connection with the Italian whisky?

If you need another link for it ….
… from the name of the Puni whisky, I’m presuming it’s matured in casks previously used for Marsala, the dessert wine.
Marsala is a port in Sicily; last year’s Giro winner, Nibali, comes from Sicily.

Macaloon

Great cask list, never mind the malts. Congrats.

alan_a

RonB wrote:

With you in spirit Alan Buona fortuna.

Scotchy Scotchy Scotchy Scotch.

alan_a

knedlicky wrote:

Alan A wrote:

http://whiskycomedian.wordpress.com/2014/05/07/whisky-for-the-giro/

The full list of whiskies to be tasted is:
Aberfeldy 12 yo 40%
Arran Amarone cask 50%
Edradour Barolo cask 11yo 58.3%
Gordon & Macphail Caol Ila Sassicaia cask 18yo 45%
Springbank Gaja Barolo cask 9yo 54.7%
Puni Alba Marsala cask 43%

There's a lot of straws there! (in the link)

Have you in mind to mention Guido De Santi in connection with the Italian whisky?

If you need another link for it ….
… from the name of the Puni whisky, I’m presuming it’s matured in casks previously used for Marsala, the dessert wine.
Marsala is a port in Sicily; last year’s Giro winner, Nibali, comes from Sicily.

Yes I will be dropping in the Guido story and Nibs / Marsala. Also Alba is Gaelic for Scotland.

Thanks again for your help.

alan_a

A brilliant wee night.

My favourite dram was the Caol Ila 18 yo Sassicia. I loved the peat and the fruit.

The punters favourite was the Edradour 11 yo Barolo cask.

Italy's Puni Alba has some way to go. It's only a young whisky (just turning 3 years) that has strong overtones of New Make spirit on the nose. Give it a few more years in the barrel and it will probably be very interesting.